Package wrapping and sealing machine



July 1, 1930; w. F. HENDRY ,7 5

PACKAGE} WRAPPING AND SEALING MACHINE Filed Aug. 25, 1927 INVENTORWluuAm F. PR T PZLW ATTORNEY Fatented July 1, 1930 UNITED STATES,

PATENT 'KOFFICE WILLIAM F. HENDRY, F OSSINING, NEW YORK, LASSIGNOR 10MANHATTAN ELEG- TRICAL SUPPLY CO. INC., OF NEW YORK, N. 'Y., ACORPORATION OF MASSACHUSETTS PACKAGE WRAPPING AND SEALING MACHINEApplication filed August 25, 1927. Serial No. 215,350.

The objects of my invention are the provision of an improved process forwrapping and sealing packages of articles, and the pro- "vision of amachine for carrying out the process.

Certain types of articles, such as malted milk tablets and otherhygroscopic articles must be wrapped and sealed in moisture proofpackages in order to protect them from the atmosphere. I have found thata very satisfactory package may be made by wrapping the articles in apiece of paper or similar material, and at the same time thatthewrapping is being performed, spraying 'on the paper a fine mist of hotwax. In sealing a package in this manner a double turn wrapper should beused so that the articles may be covered by a complete turn of wrapperbefore any wax is sprayed, whereby a finishedpackage would be encased bytwo complete thicknesses of wrapper, one

thickness unwaxed on the inside and the second thickness sealed to thefirst by wax.

The wax may be applied to the wrapper very conveniently through a spraynozzle heated by electricity and supplied with wax by means of a forcepump properly synchronized to act at the proper moment, or the wax mightbe keptin a reservoir in a liquid condition under pressure" and beapplied to the wrapper through a spray nozzle by operating a valve inthe wax supply pipe.

. The invention will be more clearly understood by reference to thefollowing description and accompanying drawings. While the invention isapplicable to various kinds of Wrapping machines, I have chosen in thefollowing description to illustrate it as it might be applied to apackaging machine of the type disclosed in Patent #1,516,902 issued toE. D. Anderson et al.

a package of articles.

Referring to the drawings, Fig. 1 illustrates in elevation the parts ofa wrapping machine, such as is disclosed in Patent #1,516,902, necessaryto an understanding of my invention. Fig. 2 is a plan view of thewrapper applying mechanism of the machine illustrated in Fig. 1. Fig. 3shows an enlarged view of a wrapper being applied to Fig. 4 illustratesa modification of the wax applying mechanism shown in Fig. 1.

In the drawings, reference numeral 1- indicates a packageof articlesabout to receive a wrapper, positioned on a pair of spaced rolls 2, 3and partially surrounded by a wrapper 9. Packages are positionedsuccessively on rolls 2, 3 by means of a pair of oscillating fingers 8which seize and transfer the packages from a stand 7 to which they arefed by a device not illustrated. Just as the fingers 8 are about todeposit a package on the rolls 2, 3 a len h of wrapping material, suchas paper, is fed off a roll 10 by means of a feed drum 11 which isactuated by a pawl arran ement 12, onto the two rolls 2, 3 directly uner the package. This paper is cut off by means of a properlysynchronized knife 13 and is. wrapped around the package by a rotatingdrum 14 which is revolved through a gear train 35 driven by a chain 36'and is 'ressed against the package 1 by a push rod -1 actuated at theproper moment by a cam. (Not shown).

through a series of nozzles 18 ositioned adjacent to the package. In orer to prevent the sealing material from being deposited on the workingparts of the machine, it may be found desirable. to position a pair ofguards 34 at the edges of the wrapper.. The wax is supplied to thenozzles 18 through a pipe 19 which interconnects through a pump 20 witha reservoir 21. The wax in the reservoir is maintained in a heatedcondition by any suitable means, such as an electric heating coil 22placed under the reservoir and is forced through the pipe 19 to thenozzles 18 by means of reciprocating pump 20. This pump has a plunger 23which is operated at the proper time through the action of a cam 24which is rotated by a chain 25' driven from a shaft 5. Shaft 5 mayconstitute the drive entirely around the package, when the spraying isstopped. In order that the wax "shall be hot when it is applied to thepaper, a heating arrangement for the nozzles 18, such as a series ofelectric heating coils 26, is provided. After the wra per has beenentirely rolled around the pac age and covered with the heated wax, theends of the wrapper are closed by means of a member 27 which is thrustagainst the ends of the rotating package so as to flatten the ends ofthe wrapper against the package in the manner more completely disclosedin the above mentioned patent. This closure of the ends of the wrapperwill be accompanied by sealing thereof as the outer portion of thewrapper at this time will be entirely impregnated with hot wax. As soonas the entire package has been wrapped and sealed, fingers 8 and 28 areoscillated and upon such oscillation the fingers 28 remove the package 1from the rollers 2 and 3 and transport it to a stand 29 while thefingers 8 place a fresh package on the rollers 2 and 3 in the mannerabove described, after which the whole operation is repeated on thefresh package.

Instead of having a pump such as 20 for forcing the wax'out of thenozzles 18, the reservoir 21 might be made airtight and provided withmeans, such as a pump 30, for

producing an air pressure inside of the reservoir suflicient to forcewax out of the nozzles 18 at the desired pressure. With this arrangementthe flow of the wax could be controlled b a valve 31 placed in thesupply line 19. This valve 31 would be actuated by a cam 24 in a similarmanner to the pump 20.- Likewise, if desirable, a heating coil 33 mightbe placed around the pipe 19 to keep the wax therein fluid at all timesas illustrated in Fig. ,4.

The entire working mechanism of the wrappin [machine has not been shownin detail as te machine illustrated may be identical is applicable toother types of machine than that illustrated. The wax which I havementioned as a sealing material may be paraffineor any other suitablesealing material and it need not necessarily be applied hot as amaterial which would seal and solidify when applied cold would do aswell. In some cases a wrapper might be applied to the package before theapplication of the sealed wrapper in which case it would not benecessary to appl a single turn of the second wrapper be ore spraying onthe sealing wax,as the package would be protected by the first wrapper.

While I have described a particular embodiment of my invention for thepurpose of illustration, it will be understood by those skilled in theart that the invention is capable of a wide variety of modifications andadaptations without a departure from the spirit of the invention as setforth in the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. In a machine for wrapping a package,

means for applying a wrapper around said package, a spraying devicecontrolled by said means for spraying sealing material on said wrapperduring the wrapping process and means for sealing the ends of thepackage.

2. A. ackage making machine, comprising means or applying a double turnwrapper to a package, means operated responsive to the application of asingle turn of said wrapper, for applying sealing material to the restof said wrapper and means for sealing the ends of the wrapper.

3. In a machine for wrapping articles, means for applying a wrapper toan article, a drive shaft for operating saidmeans, and

means for spraying sealing material on said wrapper during the wrappingoperation, said last mentioned means comprising a reciproeating forcepump operated by a cam driven by said drive shaft and directly connectedto a spray nozzle, the size of the pump being such that at a singlestroke it supplies only the amount of sealing material required.

4. The method of wrapping and sealing a package of hygroscopic materialwhich c0m-" prises applying a wrapper to said package while at the sametime depositing hot wax on said wrapper.

5. The method of wrapping and sealing a package which comprises windinga wrapper tightly around the said package and simultaneously spraying aquantity of sealing material onto the said wrapper.

6. The method of wrapping and sealing a prises applying a single turn ofwrapper to said package, then applying another turn of wrapper to saidpackage while at the same time coating said wrapper with wax.

7. The method of wrapping and sealing a package which comprises windinga, single layer of wrapper around said pac age, then winding morewrapper over said first layer while at the same time coating said morewrapper with hot wax, and finally pressing the free ends of the wrapperagainst the package while the Wax is still hot.

In testimony whereofl I" have signed my name to this specification, this24th day of August 1927.

' WILLIAM F. HENDRY.

